Exeter High School sex assault investigation expands to 3 teachers

EXETER — An Exeter High School teacher placed on paid administrative leave in April for allegedly sexually assaulting a female student has resigned his position and two more teachers were placed on leave, Superintendent Michael Morgan confirmed on Wednesday.

EXETER — An Exeter High School teacher placed on paid administrative leave in April for allegedly sexually assaulting a female student has resigned his position and two more teachers were placed on leave, Superintendent Michael Morgan confirmed on Wednesday.

Morgan placed the two additional teachers on leave Wednesday, and one of those teachers resigned. All three teachers are under investigation by police.

Morgan would not say specifically what prompted his action against the two teachers on Wednesday, but did say it was a result of the investigation into the teacher placed on leave in April.

“As a result of that investigation, I have put two teachers on paid administrative leave to conduct more of an investigation into these situations,” Morgan said. “I'm not saying there's anything criminal, that's for police to decide.”

The paid administrative leave against one of the two teachers was dropped when they opted to resign, according to Morgan.

Morgan declined to release the names of the two teachers that resigned or the one placed on paid administrative leave.

“It's still a confidential, personnel matter,” he said.

The matter was discussed by the Exeter Region Cooperative School Board in a non-public meeting on Tuesday night. Seacoast Media Group has requested a copy of the “non-approved” minutes from that meeting, but those minutes were not available as of Wednesday afternoon.

The current situation started with a complaint made to school officials against a teacher on April 18.

The teacher was accused of sexual assault against a female student in 2009, a matter that was also forwarded to police.

Multiple sources have told Seacoast Media Group the teacher worked in the high school's social studies department. Asked if that was true, Morgan said he “couldn't confirm or deny it.”

Exeter police Capt. Bill Shupe said police are investigating all three teachers and the investigation still centers around the one complaint.

“This is still an open and active investigation,” Shupe said.

At this point the police investigation does not go beyond the three teachers, but that could still change, according to Shupe.

Shupe said police are still asking any other potential victims to come forward.

“Maybe there are students that are witnesses,” Shupe said. “If students witnessed something, we'd like them to come forward as well.”

Shupe wouldn't name the teachers, saying that no charges have been filed.

Morgan said the school is working to make up for the loss of the teachers.

“I think the timing is tough with exams but we can work on that,” he said.

Morgan said he doesn't think the community has any reason to be concerned about the safety of students at this time.